A legislator from Mindanao has underscored the urgency of implementing long-term solutions to the problems besetting the transport sector by expanding the railway system and modernizing seaports, in order to efficiently move passengers and connect economic centers.
Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte said, “lot of things need to be done to ease the plight of daily commuters here in Metro Manila.”
At the same time, Duterte pledged to support in the 19th Congress increased allocations for infrastructure in the national budget to enable the administration to build or improve more roads and bridges, ports, and airports.
“But we should also make sure that the projects funded by these allocations are well-studied to ensure that government resources are spent wisely. We should not waste the hard-earned taxpayers’ money,” Duterte said.
He said there are a lot of pending transport infrastructure projects that may be implemented by the Department of Transportation. “These projects aim not only to ease the daily woes of commuters but are designed to move goods and services more efficiently to lower costs, especially for food producers,” Duterte said.
He also commended the recent pronouncement of newly-appointed Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista to elevate the Philippines’ transport industry to global standards, by among others, continuing the big-ticket infrastructure projects started by the administration of his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Although the previous administration increased infrastructure spending to an average of 5 percent of the country’s gross domestic products (GDP), which is significantly higher than in the previous presidencies, Duterte said he recognizes the fact that more needs to be done to achieve the goal of making the Philippine transport industry on par with international standards.
The Philippines’ first-ever underground railway system—the Metro Manila Subway; the LRT-1 Cavite Extension; North-South Commuter Railway system; the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) projects 4 and 7; the Philippine National Railways (PNR) Bicol segment; the Mindanao Railway Phase 1; LRT-2 West Extension Project; and Subic Clark Railway Project, to name a few, are among the projects under President Duterte’s “Build, Build, Build” program that were turned over to the Marcos administration.
Duterte said the New Cebu International Container Port project, which involves the construction of a new container port terminal complementing the existing Cebu Base Port, was also turned over by the Duterte administration to the new government.
Under President Duterte, the DOTr constructed 11 new ports, expanded 354 ports and rehabilitated 114 existing ports.
These infrastructure projects that aim to establish a seamless transport network in the country will also help revitalize the tourism industry as it continues to recover from the economic impact of the pandemic, Duterte said.
Duterte said increasing urbanization in many parts of the country and the need to boost the country’s attractiveness to foreign investors likewise require an efficient transport network.
“As we all well know, these projects will also lead to more quality jobs and new business opportunities that will invigorate the economy and help families rise above poverty,” Duterte said.